What negative VS is a "heavy" landing in a medium size jet ?

[JSACKS 0]

I thought it would be anything above -300 fpm. But I have heard from a RW pilot that -500/-600 would be "heavy". I asked that pilot at what point the gear would be damaged and the reply was probably around -900/-1000 fpm which seems amazing to me. I thought gear would crunch at maybe something around -600 fpm. How do this data seem to others?JS

[Guest RiddlePilot]

For some reason, I think I remember hearing that the C172 tubular spring landing gear can withstand around -700 fpm. Anything higher than that and your mechanic will be checking for a cracked wing spar or a bent firewall, along with the pilot checking into the hospital for a couple of spinal x-rays.You may have seen the video from the DC-9 flight testing where the tail section breaks off after an extremly hard landing. I think I recall hearing that the aircraft touched down with a vertical velocity of -14 feet per second, which translates to -840 fpm. The aircraft rolled out from that with all of the landing gear still intact, so its obvious the gear was much stronger than some other parts of the aircraft.

[Guest stems]

On this topic, how would find the landing speed in FS2004. I used to be able to read the -fpm on previous verions but I cannot find this in 2004.

[Guest Shalomar]

Donny AKA ShalomarFly 2 ROCKS!!!Can't help you specifically, but as a substitute try instant replay and dispaying the G's at the moment of touchdown. You get it by cycling your frame rate/coordinates, maybe more than once. Closer to 1, the better. The normal force of gravity of course. Edit: you could also bring up your mini panel in exterior view and watch the VS at touch down. Or just stay inside and watch the VSI on the panel when you hear the wheels touch, in replay of course.Best Regards, Donny:-wave

[michal 44]

There is a difference between "crunch" and "tolerance". I believe the actual published tolerance is about -600 fpm and anything above it may require inspection and/or repairs.Michael J.WinXP-Home SP2,AMD64 3500+,Abit AV8,Radeon X800Pro,36GB Raptor,1GB PC3200,Audigy 2http://www.precisionmanuals.com/images/forum/747400.jpghttp://www.hifisim.com/images/asv_beta_member.jpg